Jaguars cornerback Rashean Mathis was covering Colts receiver Pierre Garcon last Sunday when he planted his left foot.

Suddenly, the knee gave way and Mathis went down. On Monday, the Jaguars announced the nine-year veteran was done for the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

Mathis was one of three players the Jaguars placed on injured reserve a day after beating Indianapolis. He was joined by linebacker/special teams player Kyle Bosworth, who broke his hand against the Colts, and offensive tackle Eben Britton, who is suffering from complications from back surgery he underwent earlier this year.

The Britton move wasn't a surprise - he hasn't played in a month since his back started bothering him the morning of the Pittsburgh game on Oct. 16. Britton hasn't been seen on the practice field or in the locker room recently.

But Mathis' injury is an unexpected blow, especially on a play when he had no contact. An MRI on Monday revealed the extent of the injury and he will undergo surgery.

"It's life in the NFL. It's a tough business. It's tough for guys to get the news that they're going on IR, but as a football team, we're going forward doing the best we can.

"He's a good football player. He was having a good year for us."

The injury also raises questions about whether Mathis, a Jacksonville native, has played his last game for the team.

He will be a free agent at age 31 next March and the Jaguars had not entered into negotiations about extending his contract.

The injury also could hurt his value on the free-agent market, which could make it easier for the Jaguars to keep him if other teams aren't bidding on him.

It's by far the most serious injury of Mathis' nine-year career after being drafted in the second round out of Bethune-Cookman in 2003.

Mathis has missed only 11 games in his career, though he often played hurt. He's also a team leader.

"Oh, man, it's always tough to see any of your teammates go down," said defensive back Drew Coleman "But it's different with Rashean being one of the leaders of this defense. Words can't explain how hard I've seen this whole secondary work to get to the point where we are right now. For him not to continue to be a part of it was definitely heartbreaking, something you wouldn't wish on anybody. He was doing such a great job of being that leader, that guy that everybody looks up to play in and play out. He's always been there for us."

Mathis struggled last year when the Jaguars were frequently shuffling the secondary and lacked continuity. But when the team improved the safety position by signing Dawan Landry and Dwight Lowery and added Coleman as a nickel back, the secondary came together with Mathis playing a key role.

"He's one of the best in the league at man-to-man coverage," defensive end Jeremy Mincey said. "The future was looking bright for him. That's a huge loss. He's definitely a veteran voice we need out there."

Mathis' replacement at cornerback will be William Middleton, who started four games this year when Derek Cox was injured. Middleton has been with the team since 2009, when he was signed off the Falcons' practice squad.

"He did a solid job finishing the game for us [after Mathis went down]," Del Rio said.

The Jaguars plan to sign cornerback Ashton Youboty, who played five years with the Bills and was cut by Tampa Bay in August, to replace Mathis on the roster.

On Monday, the Jags signed second-year tight end Fendi Onobun off the Redskins' practice squad and added tight end Colin Cloherty to the practice squad, replacing Schuylar Oordt, who was waived.

Del Rio said Britton's back problems are not structural and that he is not expected to need more surgery and will return next year.

Still, Britton has had problems staying healthy since he was drafted in the second round in 2009 after the Jaguars took another tackle Eugene Monroe, in the first round. They were expected to be the bookend tackles, but it hasn't worked out that way.

"From everything I've gathered he will eventually be back, but he just won't be back in time to play this year," Del Rio said.

Britton missed nine games last year with a shoulder injury.

Bosworth, whose uncle is former NFL linebacker Brian Bosworth, spent last year on IR after being signed as an undrafted rookie free agent.

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